Time to rebuild a cask

[still_stirrin]

I don't start many threads, but I thought I'd start one for a change.

My 5 liter cask has been empty for a couple of months and since I've used it already a few cycles, I thought I'd break it down and rechar it. After charring, I soak it in water and then reassemble.

This is the "flattened" cask.
ss

[Yummyrum]

Coolies SS
Did you scrape it back to fresh wood before recharring ?

[HDNB]

i'd be charring the heads before re assembly. like me likker dark!

[cob]

don't soak in water until after reassembly. did you number the staves and witness mark the heads ?

[cede]

Yes, you'd better reassemble then fill with water until no leak or else you'll have some trouble trying to assemble the cask

[still_stirrin]

...did you number the staves and witness mark the heads ?

I did.

I agree...soak in water after reassembly. The bands will hold tight as the wood swells back out.

I haven’t scraped the staves (yet). But I don’t think I really need to. They’re really pretty clean. The initial char was not too heavy, so they should take the torch OK.

I plan to char them tomorrow after church. Too much NCAA basketball today.
ss

[cob]

to protect your edges put the staves back into a barrel with the smallest hoops,

and char the barrel semi assembled then char the heads separately.

[The Baker]

Hi,
I hope your woodworking skills far exceed mine.
I spent many hours on two small barrels and will have another look one day. They probably still leak.

Geoff

[Saltbush Bill]

If possible take note of the exact position that the hoops originally sat, and if need be mark those positions.
If you put them on in another position your looking for trouble in times to come.

[still_stirrin]

Adding char

In the process of charring the staves. You can see the color difference between those done and undone.

Here's a look at the outsides all layed out.

[still_stirrin]

Reassembled cask

Boy, it was like juggling chainsaws trying to get the cask reassembled. Alignment and sliding the bands requires many more hands than I have. Tricky.

But, in the end, it all fit back together. Now on to the water bath.

[Deerhunter]

That is great. I'll have to give that a try next year. This will be my 3rd fill up. I'm sure it won't be as good as the last. Be will be sitting in there for a years time so we'll see.

[MichiganCornhusker]

Thanks for posting ,SS, I’ve got a 10 gallon barrel that I’ve been meaning to get to and this got me back on track.
A member here helped me source the barrel quite a while back from a defunct winery and I’ve never done anything with it.

I liked the idea of turning it into a thumper, but then it hit me just now: I also have a large stockpile of corn from last year too. I do believe this has led me to an adventure to fill it with corn malt whiskey.

I hope you’re having good luck with your barrel sealing up with the soaks.
What are you planing to refill it with?

Thanks again, gotta go soak some corn...